Sankara stones, hats, and you

Posted by Inbanana Jones from alpha3.csd.uwm.edu on April 25, 1999 at 11:08:13:

Oye, amigos,
Thought I would add dos soles... First off, Sankara stones are more commonly called "Lingam", "Shiva/Siva Linga/Lingam" or some such homonymic variant. The stones are objects used in Hindu ceremonies and religious displays as symbolic of the, ahem, male generative power of the god Shiva. They are placed on altars, in household shrines, etc., during festivals and accented with flower garlands, bowls of milk, incense, and other items. The female counterpart to the lingam are "Yoni"; yoni are essentially coupled with the lingam to create a tantric union of male and female energies. Lingam are ideally granitic stones found naturally rounded among the cobbles of the Sacred Ganges; the presence of 1,2, or 3 red stripes on the stone is particularly auspicious. These may be painted on as well. "Sankara" in the film may have been intended to represent the trad. Hindu philosophy of "Sankhya", which is (basically) an understanding of the process of creation through the merger of two distinct and kinetic forces. A good basic resource on this sort of thing is "The Art of Tantra", by Philip Rawson, available at libraries and better bookstores everywhere.
As to the fedora, if like that other fella who narrowly escaped narcoterroristas and bombs in Colombia, any of you happen to travel through the rural Andes you will find that nearly everyone wears felt fedoras of some kind. Many of these can be particularly nicely decorated too. When I was there a (not mad) hatter made me a nice one for about $8 American. It was the perfect hat for the region, as demonstrated by its ubiquity, and helped me to feel more comfy. Granted it DID make me feel a bit more dashing...

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: Oye, amigos,
: Thought I would add dos soles...  First off, Sankara stones are more commonly called "Lingam", "Shiva/Siva Linga/Lingam" or some such homonymic variant.  The stones are objects used in Hindu ceremonies and religious displays as symbolic of the, ahem, male generative power of the god Shiva.  They are placed on altars, in household shrines, etc., during festivals and accented with flower garlands, bowls of milk, incense, and other items.  The female counterpart to the lingam are "Yoni"; yoni are essentially coupled with the lingam to create a tantric union of male and female energies.  Lingam are ideally granitic stones found naturally rounded among the cobbles of the Sacred Ganges; the presence of 1,2, or 3 red stripes on the stone is particularly auspicious.  These may be painted on as well.  "Sankara" in the film may have been intended to represent the trad. Hindu philosophy of "Sankhya", which is (basically) an understanding of the process of creation through the merger of two distinct and kinetic forces.  A good basic resource on this sort of thing is "The Art of Tantra", by Philip Rawson, available at libraries and better bookstores everywhere.
: As to the fedora, if like that other fella who narrowly escaped narcoterroristas and bombs in Colombia, any of you happen to travel through the rural Andes you will find that nearly everyone wears felt fedoras of some kind.  Many of these can be particularly nicely decorated too.  When I was there a (not mad) hatter made me a nice one for about $8 American.  It was the perfect hat for the region, as demonstrated by its ubiquity, and helped me to feel more comfy.  Granted it DID make me feel a bit more dashing...

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